An eastern Kentucky woman was arrested last week for child abuse after reports said her son “showed signs of torture.”
The returned to school on Tuesday after not attending since before Christmas and appeared to have “chipped front teeth and a busted nose,” WYMT reports.
A school official called police, and the boy told investigators that he had “been packing wood and riding his bike, but he would not say how he was injured,” according to a complaint against his mother, identified as 42-year-old Mary Hall.
“Mary was asked about his nose and teeth,” the report said. “She stated taht they’ve been packing wood and has been out playing. She said he could have done it in his sleep.”
The child did not claim any abuse, and Hall denied knowing how he was injured. But, the warrant for her arrest said, “there are times when [he] is not allowed to eat at home due to discipline. [He] has appeared hungry.”
The warrant said the boy “gorges himself when he eats at school,” and in fact, on the day he returned this week, “he gorged himself until he got sick and vomited.”
The warrant said the boy “was sick this morning after eating. He is real pale real skinny. He does not look good. He looks malnourished.”
Kentucky State Troopers searched the home and found the room where the boy “has been held” had a lock on the outside. They found a single mattress and a lamp in the room, which was “referred to as the dark room.”
According to Mountain Top Media, other children in the home did not show signs of abuse. The warrant said that those children would report what the victim ate at school and he would be denied food at home if he ate there.
The boy was taken from the home, went into cardiac arrest, and was taken to the University of Kentucky Hospital, where doctors said he was “unable to keep solid food down and the treating doctor stated that the child showed signs of torture.”
Hall has been charged with first-degree child abuse, first-degree assault, and kidnapping. She is being held without bond.
